Hearts and Minds
by blissful catatonia
Summary: In the midst of war they meet as friends but what will happen when they learn just how wrong they are. The Huntsman and the Redcoat from ACIII multiplayer. Rated M for all the usual stuff lemon, violence and swearing.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer Ubisoft owns Assassin's Creed and I don't but you knew that.

Rating this M because most of what I write tends to go in that direction: / who am I kidding this is going to be bloody and messy and sexy if it ever gets past the first couple thousand words. SO if that sort of thing bothers you read no further.

* * *

Bostonian's on the whole were a hearty bunch, living so close to the ocean and being exposed to the harsher elements of coastal weather had made them so but even those most hardened to the heavy downpours of late autumn were finding these endless rainy days a burden. The roads had become mires which both man and beast would struggle to navigate without problems and it showed. There was a cart over laden with wood stuck fast in the deep mud and the assassin felt real pity for the animal which had been forced to endure the burden of that load. Everything had taken on that depressing colour of dirt, the buildings, the people even the sky seemed to more accurately reflect what was underfoot and he felt a wave of homesickness wash over his weary soul.

Moving past a group of down trodden looking women hovering outside a bakery and hoping for some cheap food which wouldn't be saleable the next day he focused once more on the far more pleasing vista in front of him. William De Saint Prix smirked at the subtle sway of the lady walking ahead of him, her gait was steady yet alluring and he found himself curious to see if the front of her was as attractive as the back. Quickening his pace he swept easily past the few Bostonians brave enough to face the deluge and carry on with their daily business. Most of the residents of his adopted home had stayed indoors or where huddling in doorways trying to wait for a break in the rain but he doubted any such break was coming.

A few steps behind her now he saw her body lean to one side as her footing was lost in the thick mud underfoot. His hand shot out with lightening speed and grabbed the arm of the woman before she completely lost her balance. "Careful mademoiselle it would not do for you to fall and dirty your dress." Keeping his hand on her until he felt her body steady beneath his grip, forgetting the joke he was about to make about the weather when her hazel eyes flashed at him.

"Thank you very much that could have been very messy." Ignoring the fact that the hem of her skirt was already caked in mud she smiled her most dazzling effort at her handsome rescuer. She was carrying a small pamphlet which had become utterly sodden. What she could see of his face was lean and most of it was in the shadow of a hood he wore curiously enough beneath a tri-corn hat.

"May I ask what that used to be?"

Not failing to notice the slight upturn at the corner of his mouth Eleanor went along with his light hearted tone and offered a reply. "Of course you may, it was a collection of various poems but the one which had my attention was "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" by Thomas Gray. Not something I would recommend if you are in need of some cheer in this dreary season."

"Ah a little light reading I see. However for this miserable time of year I can think of a great many other things I would rather wile away the hours looking at."

Widening her eyes she nodded not in the least shocked by his innuendo. "As can I my good sir but right now I fear my most important task is to get out of this rain since I'm already late for a meeting."

"If you have far to go I could summon a carriage for you it would be no trouble."

"I only have a few more mud soaked streets to go but thank you for your consideration."

Glancing around he saw they were beginning to catch the attention of a small group huddling in the doorway of a printers shop. Making a crook in his arm he offered it to her, "Please permit me to escort you to your destination."

They chatted about the weather and other mundane things until she guided him into an alleyway at the North side church. "So, here we are."

He looked behind at a small group of children trying to coax either coin or fun from a passerby at the entrance to the alley. He wanted to think of something to say to keep her chatting but he knew that would be inappropriate but when he reverted his attention to his companion he was stunned to see her face moving towards his, her hazel eyes shining bright with mischief. "I hear a slight accent and I believe this is how you bid good day to a friend in your part of the world." One of her lips brushed the stubble on his left cheek but only the most delicate of touches, the air got more of his kiss than his flesh did. When she moved to his other cheek he turned his face towards her and made the most of the contact.

"You are mistaken Mademoiselle no self respecting Frenchman would ever allow such a beautiful woman to escape with so flimsy a kiss. This is how we do it..." Placing a hand on either shoulder he pressed his lips firmly onto either of her cheeks trying not to linger too long enjoying the gentle floral fragrance of her hair. Some rainwater dripped from the top of his hat onto her upturned face but she didn't seem too troubled by it. Seeing another opportunity to stay with her he brushed at the sodden wayward strands of hair sticking to her apple red cheeks, "My apologies..."

This time a flash of green in her cat like hazel eyes, 'Why had he never seen this woman before?'

"Think nothing of it; I could hardly be any wetter than I already am." Her brilliant smile had him once more wishing they had more time together but would it be too blunt to ask her outright to meet with him?

He was still standing too close to her and she wasn't showing any signs of discomfort. Most things in life for William de Saint-Prix were conundrums to be mulled over and reconsidered a thousand times but for once he decided to act without forethought. "I wonder if you would do me the honour of –"

"Eleanor my girl what are you doing standing out in this rain? You'll catch your death out here!"

A round bodied, ruddy faced man stood in the doorway of the church gesturing to the woman to get inside. "I'll be there in a minute Watkins I'm thanking a kind man for helping me through the streets."

The old man was not best pleased by her reply and William chose not to make the situation worse for her. "The kindness was yours; your company brightened my day." Tipping the edge of his tri-cornered hat he bowed.

He smiled at her awkward curtsey and was once more mesmerized by her eyes; they shone so bright against the greyness of the day like a warm fire on a gloomy winter's night. "Likewise but I don't even know your –"

"Eleanor, come inside now so we can shut the door!"

"Oh for goodness sake Watkins there is no need to be so rude, I'm coming!" Turning back to the far more pleasing sight of her young escort she smiled, "I'm sorry I really must go."

Tilting his head once more he watched as she disappeared behind the imposing black door and sighed 'It could have been beautiful...'

* * *

Flicking the blood from his hooks he deftly deposited the weapon back in his belt, tired and more than a little frustrated from his apparent inability to track down the redcoat who was causing so much trouble for his brothers in the city. Stepping over the body of the poor ill-informed Templar – had he known anything he would have talked – he made his way towards the docks. Night was beginning to fall and most of the decent folks of Boston would already be home enjoying their dinner or tucking their little ones into bed but for men like him night was often the most productive period. Fog was rolling in from the coast and he began to relax as he felt the thick white mist envelope him, being unseen was almost as important as being vigilant.

Somewhere ahead of him he heard a scream although shrill it was definitely masculine and he danced around some discarded boxes making his way to the rooftops and the source of the sound. On the rooftop of a warehouse he glanced to his left, a flash of red vanishing into the mist and without missing a step he gracefully leapt from his perch and set off in pursuit of his new target. Red clothes were rare in Boston most of the citizens wore the plain coloured cheaper dyes provided by the tailors, besides which red was not a popular colour among the colonists. As he darted past the body of a fallen rebel more sounds from ahead alerted him to the direction of his quarry – the unmistakable sound of crates falling – if he was lucky his prey would have run right into them.

Luck wasn't on his side, the crates had been scattered to slow his progress. He growled as he tried to navigate the obstacles in the dimly lit back streets and winced when his knee connected with the sharp edge of the last one he tried to jump over. "Baiser cette merde!" Scrambling to keep his balance he grimaced trying to decide which direction to take. He heard a woman's laughter to his right and left, believing that a redcoat running at high speed would not illicit laughter. After an hour of searching every corner and shop front he decided enough was enough it was time to go home and open up one of the last remaining bottles of wine he had brought with him from his father's vineyard in France and let his mind go over the happier details of a meeting from a few days before the English woman with the eyes he would kill to look upon once more.

* * *

Matthew Davenport strolled across the deck of the ship with his hands clasped behind his back and his head turned in the direction of his daughter. The soft rocking motion of the docked vessel was causing his stomach, still suffering from last night's drinking binge, to roll in the most unpleasant fashion. Wishing he had met her on dry land he rubbed the back of his forearm across his brow and tried to get this over with as quickly as possible so he could find a nice dark room to rest in for a few hours. "We have received reliable information that the man they call the Huntsman frequents a French cafe on the southern edge of Boston. It will be your job to go there flush him out and kill him. So far all our efforts have failed but I'm sure with your skills you can succeed where others have not."

Eleanor knew which particular talents her father was referring to but she wasn't offended by the implication. She had done many things for the cause and would do them again without hesitation and to bring down the Huntsman... "Do you have any information about his appearance, his name, anything which would help narrow the search down?"

"He's French and an assassin nothing else."

"I wonder if an English woman can get herself hired in a French inn." She smirked as she gave her father her now trademark two fingered salute. "There is no time to lose the sooner I begin the sooner I can get back."

He watched her leave with a genuine sense of pride, his daughter, the girl who had forsaken his name to serve anonymously amongst the other men he commanded. She wore the uniform of the Redcoat with pride and carried out her orders with zeal he found lacking in many of his other men.

Eleanor Mallow would not be wearing her beloved red jacket for her next mission, she would be a girl who had fallen on hard times and who needed to earn an honest living. She made her way to the small house her father had rented for her and found an appropriate dress among her many guises and smiled when she found just the thing – a low cut tight fitting dress of the brightest scarlet, more suited to the harlot's who frequented the brothels and inns than to a daughter born to a commander in the British army.

She took in the sight of herself in the mirror and turned her body from one side to other, "Well Eleanor you better hope you don't have to do much chasing with this thing on."

The woman made her way to the street door to begin her task completely aware that no matter what she clothed herself in she was still the same deadly Templar she had always been.

* * *

Translation (probably wrong) Baiser cette merde: fuck this shit.

A/N this is part of a small fic I had in mind from playing the multiplayer on ACIII. Some of the characters from the game will make an appearance if I ever decide to expand it to a full story. I have another 5000 words written for this but editing is so painfully slow with only one working hand so I'll post this and see how it goes down with the readers.


	2. Chapter 2

The streets of Boston were fully alive by the time Eleanor had made it half way across the city to the small inn where she hoped to gain employment of some form. A vendor had been yelling to all within earshot the day's headlines from the Boston daily but he stopped long enough to ogle the dark haired young woman who sauntered past him in the red dress which made her stand out even more than her confident stride. She felt his appreciative eyes on her but rather than being annoyed she was comforted – she had chosen the right costume for her performance. The inn stood at a row of wooden two-storey buildings all of which were for some manner of trade and standing at the short flight of steps she took a slight pause to prepare herself for her new role. Taking a deep breath she climbed the small flight of stairs and shoved open the door under the sign which read 'The Frenchman's Rest.' Muttering to herself as she stepped inside that is was intended for the French the sign should probably not be written in English.

The air inside stank of stale ale and garlic but the clouds of smoke hanging over the tables made those smells almost pale into insignificance since it was all she could smell or taste. Having spent many long months onboard various ships in her early days of being a soldier she had bunked with some of the smelliest men you could ever hope to encounter but she still had to stifle a cringe – it was truly pungent and nobody even thought of opening a window.

There was a huge unlit fire on the far wall and as many small square tables crammed into the space as would fit. Eleanor imagined having to work between those stinking tables trying to carry food and fend off the unwelcome hands of the men who would be drinking at them and balked.

"How can I help you?"

Turning in the direction of the voice she found herself face to face with a short Frenchman with a perfectly round pot belly and not a single hair to speak of on his head. Smiling she stepped forward cautiously and she hoped humbly "I hope you can Sir this is the fifth establishment I've been in today. I am seeking employment of any kind and if that should happen to come with a room so much the better."

It took him a few seconds to lift his head to the face above the breasts so teasing peeking over the top of her dress, "What experience do you have?"

'Ah now here is the clincher...'

"None whatsoever I'm afraid. I travelled to the colonies with my parents and sadly both had passed in such a short time and left a previously pampered girl homeless and penniless." Her accent was undeniable – she was a woman of breeding – better to dress up the truth than try to fake a horrible common accent.

"A bit old to be a helpless orphan aren't you?" He sneered but continued enjoying her cleavage which somehow made his expression more offensive to her.

"It was never meant to happen Sir, my father sank all his savings into tea just when the colonists decided to object to the taxation and the losses where more than he could tolerate." Stepping closer to him she cast her eyes down to the floor hoping he would follow the direction of her gaze and once more become enamoured with her bosom. "I confess I have no skills and no preparations were ever made for me to fend for myself but one must play the hand one is dealt. I will work hard if you'll just give me a chance."

She chanced a peek up and saw he had indeed followed her lead. "Well now there is a small room upstairs you could take but its plain and I won't make any effort to pretty it up for you. His eyes darted to the heavy set woman glaring at him from the end of the bar. "And it can't hurt to have someone young and fresh serving the men. I'll give you a trial for one week and if you show me you can work then there will be a job for you but your first week will be for room and board only, I'm not paying good money for a useless employee."

He moved from her and beckoning her to follow with his finger began walking to the woman Eleanor knew was his wife – who else would stand this lecherous little man if not the one anchored to him? – "This is Claudette my good lady wife and I am Pierre DuPont. What is your name?"

Claudette's features were probably once far prettier than his man deserved to marry but time and alcohol had played hell with her skin, she had the bulbous red nose of a heavy drinker and the dark shadows of a light sleeper.

"Eleanor Mallow Sir and it's a pleasure to meet you Madame DuPont."

"Yes, yes never mind the pleasantries. Go collect your belongings and be back here for 5pm to begin your first shift. My wife will make your room ready before your return."

After thanking them both profusely while struggling to refrain from grinning Eleanor made her way out of the inn and back onto the streets of Boston. 'God that was so easy, that poor bastard has no idea how much hiring me is going to cost him in the long run.' The vendor who had been so admiring of her not thirty minutes before smiled when he saw her approach but his smile faded when he saw the entirely malicious grin which looked so out of place on such a beautiful face.

* * *

William stepped from the shadows of the building and followed the man inside, it wasn't often he got to do his work in the daytime but the sounds of the people going about their business was a bonus he never failed to appreciate. The man in question was a naval officer with a nice side line in slave trading – he was amassing a fortune selling on the men and woman his scoundrels would abduct from both the natives and the migrants alike and William was especially pleased he was charged with the task of ending the scoundrel.

The tall slim man walked with a confident air never once did he consider himself to be in any danger not even when death lurked less than three paces behind. William's lip tilted slightly as he climbed the stairs behind him not even having to bother with looking inconspicuous. The lower floor had been empty and now that he was sure only he and his quarry where in the building William moved.

Pouncing he clutched a handful of the man's hair and used it to tug his head all the way back, exposing his throat to the hook his right hand had placed at his neck. "Who is helping you get your slaves out of Boston?"

The man tried to pull himself free but the assassin had him in a death grip and just to be sure he knew fighting would be pointless and painful he lifted his leg and smashed his knee into his victim's coxis. "The pain will only increase every time you make me repeat myself, now who is your contact?"

He could almost hear the man's brain ticking away as he tried to think of a way out of this situation, "If I tell you will you let me go? I can pay I have money – lots of money."

"I know you do and how you came about that wealth my friend is the reason I now stand behind you. Last chance to keep both hands intact..."

Fear and hope in equal amounts made his voice come out in a high sing song tone. "Andrew Welsh the harbour master at the farthest eastern dock." Gasping for air but afraid to inhale in case he moved the monstrous hook he could feel against his flesh he finally tried pleading. "Please let me go."

The Frenchman licked his lips and wondered how many people he sold had been worked to death and shook his head. "You and your kind are worthless and we will end you one by one but for now I will make an example of you just to be sure your brethren know the dangers they face." With that he grabbed the man's shoulder and spun him around to face him, the motion of his body embedded the hook deep into the soft tissue of his neck and tore open the flesh, leaving a grotesque grin-like slash in its wake. Now face to face with his executioner he gargled and choked on the blood flowing from the gaping wound where his throat used to be.

"You shall sin no more, rest in peace."

He shifted the hat perched on top of his hooded head and left the man dead on the ground behind him. There was an underground entrance only a couple of streets away and if he kept his head down and his pace steady with luck nobody would notice the blood sprayed across the front of his dark coat.

* * *

Most of her hair had come free from the bun at the back of her head and her face was flushed with effort and annoyance. This was harder than she thought and if that horrible man touched her arse one more time...

"Hurry up with those plates Eleanor there are people waiting to eat!"

"I'll be right there sir."

'When this is over I'm going to kill you slowly you rat faced bastard.' Smiling she placed the dirty plates on the bar and scooped up the meals to be served to a rowdy group of loggers who had only arrived moments before but seemed to have expected their food piping hot and waiting for them. Balancing a plate on her forearms and one in each hand she carefully walked toward them.

The fattest of the group seemed especially eager for his meal and cat called to her across the room. "If you run we might even get to eat it before its stone cold."

"Oui Jaques and her boobies might bounce around as well!"

His friends seemed to find his comment hysterical but Eleanor kept smiling as in her head she killed him in the most hideous manner possible.

The street door opened and the figure of a man clothed all in black blocked out the fading light of the day. "Good evening Monsieur William please take a seat and I will be right with you." Claudette gave him her sultriest smile as she addressed him but Eleanor was far too engrossed with the new arrival to pay her much attention.

"Eleanor..."

Practically dropping the last of the plates in front of the sweaty loggers she wiped her hands on her dirty apron and walked to him trying to hide just how glad she was to see him again. "I never did catch your name."

"You know her?" Claudette wasn't happy her favourite patron was looking at the new servant with a glint in his eye and it showed. Scowling she flipped her hair over her shoulder and lifted her face to him. "She is no help at all I will serve you one of our most valued customers."

He forced his eyes to the older woman and smiled "Thank you Claudette I will have my usual." And with that he turned back to the girl who had been the source of a few of his more animated dreams of late. "What are you doing here, I don't understand..."

She knew that in times of war tales of woe were common and entirely believable but this man had seen her dressed in her finest clothes and meeting with important people only days before. 'Think fast but keep it simple...'

"I don't feel entirely comfortable discussing my private affairs in public and with a man who still withholds his name from me."

"HA! Private affairs no less, it seems someone has forgotten just how far she has fallen. Her parents are dead and her father was stupid enough to lose his entire fortune by way of a goodbye. She is penniless – a vagrant if you will – don't let the noble voice deceive you Monsieur." Claudette spoke far louder than she had to just to make sure that all her clients were aware of the new girl's lowly station in life and the smile on her face showed how much she enjoyed imparting the information.

His tongue flicked out over his bottom lip and Eleanor had to stop herself from mirroring his actions, "I would be grateful Madame DuPont if you could fetch me some of your fine cooking."

Still so pleased with herself she failed to notice the fact that she had been dismissed and walked off to the kitchen swinging her sizable hips.

"My name is William de Saint Prix and I humbly ask you to forgive my question which led to that odious display of bad manners."

Eleanor smiled not in the least offended by the woman since the story was a complete fabrication but where the old bat had meant to harm she had instead helped. He felt sorry for her now and would be more inclined to believe what she said. "She spoke the truth Mr de Saint Prix and when you met me the other day I was on my way to a meeting where the last of my family's wealth was divided up between my father's debtors and now you find me here making a poor job of trying to put a roof over my head."

"You have no friends who would help...?"

"None my father hadn't borrowed from or cheated on his way to poverty."

His eyes swept over her dress but she never once felt them linger on her soft peaks. "My sympathies for the loss of your family and for your circumstances but I believe wealth is the least of your losses."

His eyes met hers and held her gaze for a few seconds but it felt like more – to Eleanor it felt like the world had stood still and nothing existed beyond those deep blue orbs.

"Girl you have tables waiting!" Pierre's dulcet tones broke the moment but William was unwilling to let it pass unmarked.

"When you have time come and join me at my table Eleanor I had been about to invite you to dine with me when that rude man interrupted me the other day. Now I find myself with another opportunity I refuse to let another interruption deprive me of your company."

Genuinely sorry to be refusing she shook her head. "I doubt I will have time William I'm sorry."

"I'll wait until you do, they can't work you without letting you eat."

She tried again "It certainly won't be soon not until the place quietens down and your food will be here in minutes."

His lips turned up at the corners and she caught the smallest flash of his white teeth, "I'll wait."


	3. Chapter 3

As the early evening passed and the tables began to fill with drinkers and not diners the whole atmosphere of the place changed. She had felt it common before but by God common was at least four steps up the ladder from the cess pit Pierre's cafe became once the sun set. Whores came and went in a slow steady stream, looking for lonely sailors or hunters desperate enough to hire their disease ridden bodies.

The first surprise of the day had been getting hired so easily and the second – the damn job was so difficult she was finding it almost impossible to eavesdrop on the men sitting around the tables chatting. The drunken fool sitting in the corner constantly scratching what he thought passed for a tune of his fiddle certainly didn't help. She kept his glass full and his pockets quickly emptied but to her horror he joined some men playing cards and won enough money to lengthen his stay and shorten her odds of success. William left at some point just after the first dinner rush and Eleanor had allowed herself a wry smile, 'You'll wait indeed! Well it's your loss Frenchman.' On her way out of the kitchen Pierre stormed passed her with an evil expression on his face.

Eleanor had just left with the last of the dinner orders placed and the older woman sighed as she dipped her spoon into the sauce she was stirring, she was against hiring the girl but she had to confess her own workload was now better than halved and that alone might be worth having to lie in her bed at night and listen to her husband creeping into the little slut's room. And now here she was in her kitchen actually managing to find the time to give the food the attention it deserved when she felt a sudden and incredibly painful bang on the back of her head.

"What the hell are you doing standing over the same pot for an hour woman, do you think because we have staff you can be lazy." His hand was still held aloft with the huge metal ladle he had just cracked across the back of her skull but Claudette couldn't really see that, her entire attention was taken by the firework show in her own head. "Get back to work you slovenly fat old cow."

Eleanor watched this through the hatched window and smirked.

"Good evening Eleanor."

Spinning on her heels and not liking how she had been caught off guard she found herself face to face with the Frenchman she assumed had given up on her. "Oh, good evening to you as well. I never saw you come back in."

He smiled and his slightly stern looking mouth suddenly became a whole lot more interesting. "You were too busy watching Pierre perform his version of his marital duties but don't worry I happen to know she puts things in his food to get her own back."

Genuinely surprised she glanced back at the woman still trying to shake off the blow and smiled "Good for her!"

Pierre joined her behind the bar and shoved her hard enough to make her stumble "Get out there and keep filling glasses if they don't drink they don't sit!"

She caught her balance facing the wall and paused allowing herself time to control her natural instincts, under any other circumstances this man would have a blade in his chest but she was here to do a job. 'Bide your time Eleanor...'

Once the two men were left alone Pierre grinned showing four front teeth which looked more like they belonged in grave yard than a mouth. "You have to keep them on their toes eh my friend?"

William leaned in to him still wearing his normal genial expression "Touch her again and you will deal with me Pierre." The little man stood slack jawed and automatically reverted back to his submissive stance he most often took around anyone who could hit back. "Bring me a drink to the table in the corner and let Eleanor have her dinner now."

Nodding his head eagerly, "Of course, of course she is more than entitled to a break. Shall I send her over with your drink?" But the other Frenchman was already moving towards his table and ignored the sycophantic little cretin's attempts to appease him. Within two minutes he had his drink and Eleanor was joining him with plates filled with beef and potatoes.

"I know you've eaten already but I don't like to eat alone."

Already on his feet and pulling out the chair next to him for her he nodded "I am starving I left my earlier meal to fetch a gift for you."

Pushing in her seat and retaking his own he was amused to see the beautiful girl eyeing him with clear suspicion. "Why would you want to give me something?"

"The rain ruined yours and I thought you might like this one better – it is certainly not as gloomy as the other you had." Removing a small book from his pocket he slid it across the table to her.

When she laughed William felt something twitch inside his chest. "That is most considerate of you but I feel I must confess I'm not a big reader. A friend advised me to broaden my mind and I was attempting to do that but literature is not my favourite way to pass a quiet hour."

"Your friend was correct but perhaps he could have suggested something more to your taste?"

Eleanor poked a fork into her dinner and smiled. The friend she had spoken of was not really a friend more of an associate but what Haytham Kenway said Eleanor Mallow did. Since she had first set eyes on the older man she had been utterly enthralled by him and whenever she heard he was in Boston she would always take extra care with her appearance on the off chance they would meet. He paid her only cursory attention but she felt with time she might be able to earn his respect if not more. "Thank you William I will no doubt be glad of this distraction once I retire to my gloomy little bedroom."

This time the twitch he felt was lower, "I have a wonderful library which I will put entirely at your disposal Mademoiselle."

They passed a pleasant time chatting as they ate but Eleanor could see the annoyed looks she was getting from her new boss "Why do you eat here? There are so many nicer places in Boston?"

"Perhaps so, but since I live only moments from here I find dining here convenient besides Claudette is a wonderful cook no?"

Looking down at her empty plate Eleanor had to give him that – the woman knew her way around a kitchen.

* * *

The rest of the night passed quickly and at one point Eleanor looked in the direction of the table she had shared with William and was more than a little disappointed to see he had once more slipped away when her back was turned. That he had left didn't surprise her – he didn't seem the sort to sit around drinking until he was thrown into the street – but his absence had a negative effect on her mood until she noticed two men huddling together in the far corner. Lifting a tray from the bar she made her way slowly to them taking empty tankards from the tables and even pausing to wipe them clean before she moved on. People would suddenly stop talking if someone approached quickly she knew doing exactly what they expected from her would garner no attention.

The one wearing a white bandana leaned in closer. "The delivery is well hidden we will just have to wait for a reasonable opportunity to get to it without attracting the attention of the redcoats. He told me to sit tight and that is what we must do."

"That is easy for you to say, it is not on your property and when did he tell you to sit tight I never saw him speak with you?"

"He mumbled it to me as he passed on his way out. What would you have us do we can't just turn up and take it away we would be seen. Within a day or two your farm will be clear of it and you will have earned a nice profit all you have to do is stay calm and keep on with your normal routine."

Eleanor breezed past them with barely a second glance until one of them called out to her "Bring us one more each Belle."

Dipping her head to him she smiled, "Right away sir."

The streets of Boston were never quiet - if you want quiet you go to Lexington. There is always a patrol of soldiers or a drunken sailor urinating on a fence to keep you company but Eleanor wasn't paying any of those distractions the slightest attention she was fully focused on the farmer who had been practically the last man to leave the bar and thankfully incredibly easy to track down when she had "gone to bed" five minutes later. What should have been a 30 minute walk was taking now over an hour as he criss-crossed the roads and staggered into anything he could find to hold him upright and she began to wonder if he could even remember where home was.

What she assumed was a stray dog ran out of a field to bark at him but when he reached down and stroked the animal she felt a ray of hope, could this be his dog? Her steps slowed as she watched his lumbering frame cut a rough path over the field to the small farmhouse at the end of it. She stood for a minute to be entirely sure he was indeed going inside and hadn't happened upon the wrong door, when she had utterly assured herself this was the farm with the delivery they seemed most determined the redcoats not find she back tracked toward her new living quarters.

'Not bad for a first day, so it's not the Huntsman but at least I have something to report.' She had her foot on the first wooden step of the external stairs which lead to her room when she heard someone behind her coughing. As quickly and quietly as she could she bounded up the steps and sat down on the top one trying to look like she had been there all along when the figure appeared at her side of the building.

The nearest street lamp was over 100 feet away but she knew who it was immediately "William..."

If she had startled him he gave no sign of it "I never expected to find you outside at this hour."

Moving slowly down the stairs towards him she stopped halfway "I just can't settle in there, the room is so gloomy, I thought a little night air might relax me enough to sleep." She watched him rest his arm on the banister and his foot on the first stair. "You said you never expected to see me here, are you here to see Pierre?"

"While I never expected to see you I suppose it would be more honest to say I hoped I would..." His eyes never left her face as he spoke and she found herself unconsciously moving to meet him. On level ground she was not more than 3 inches shorter than him but with her standing on the first stair he had to look up to see her face, most men would have objected to being towered over and moved up but he stayed put.

She watched the almost hypnotically slow movement of his hand as it approached her face and felt his fingertips come to rest in her hair while his thumb stroked her cheek. His eyes searched every feature and lingered on her lips, "I have to taste them..."

She closed her eyes as he pulled her nearer and felt the warmth of his breath as it brushed against her lips then the softest of touches as their lips met tentatively at first with feather-light glancing caresses. When an almost inaudible groan escaped his throat she felt a wave of pure heat course through her body and instinctively leaned closer to his body. This signal was all he needed. The contact of the kiss was immediately intensified and he stepped forward placing himself beside her on the stair with his arms snaking around her body to close any remaining distance between them. Wrapping her arms around his neck she let him guide her back up the stairs while both still locked in an increasingly hungry kiss.

Their backwards progress was finally halted by the rail at the top of the stairs when she broke away from this kiss for air. His mouth moved to her neck seemingly just as content to explore the sensitive curves as it met her shoulder. She tugged his hat off his head when it banged against her face and he pulled away from her neck grinning "I think we should get inside before we start to undress.

Her laughter sang in his brain as he watched her try to think of an appropriate response to his comment but the smile faded from her face when she saw how he was looking at her. His eyes were burning into hers and he once more brought their bodies together covering her mouth with his he let his hands begin to wander across her form as they moved together still in a tight embrace towards the door. She was trapped between the door and the man but this wasn't the sort of trap she wanted to escape from, his desire was growing and the proof of that was grinding against her groin heightening both her passion and her impatience. His tongue slipped over her teeth and circled her own with maddening skill and hers eagerly returned the contact. The hand which wasn't holding his hat reached behind her trying to coax the door handle and get inside.

"What's going on out here, is someone there?"

Pierre's angry voice cut through their mood like a knife through butter. Panicking she thrust him away "He can't find you here."

Her words were spoken in a desperate sounding whisper and he held a finger to her lips. "Shh..."

With one flowing movement he leapt up onto the railing before turning back to her kissing her forehead. "Vous êtes une beauté." His face lit up with mischief as he snatched his hat from her fingers and left her watching the tails of his coat swirling behind him as he vanished into the gardens below.

"Eleanor is that you, do you have someone up there?"

She shoved open the door and stepped inside but popped her head back out from behind the door. "I heard something too Pierre but I think it is from the house next door."

She heard him mumble curses down upon the neighbours before the door slammed shut and moving into her grimy little room she closed the door behind her. Leaning back against it she sighed as her fingers stroked the skin of her neck where his mouth had been only moments before. Although she doubted the wisdom of what had just happened she was smiling sure that even for women like her a little romance could do no harm.

* * *

Translations

Vous êtes une beauté: You are beautiful.

A/N This is all I had written and it will be maybe 6 weeks before the cast comes off so unless I get really good at typing one handed this story like my others is on hiatus.


	4. Chapter 4

Eleanor slumped in her chair and huffed "But Father these people are vile I don't see why we can't just go in with numbers and force them to tell us who the Huntsman is." She watched him drop his quill onto the desk and look at her with a familiar placatory expression. "Don't tell me it will be over soon I'm waiting on these people hand and foot! What it's doing to my lungs breathing in that foul air to say nothing of my poor hands!"

He tried not to laugh knowing it might well send his daughter into a fit of temper which would result in broken crockery and likely cost him a small fortune to end. "Look at the results my dear you must try to focus on the prize. After one day you have come to us with information which is being acted on as we speak. None of the other spies we sent found anything even remotely useful."

"That's as maybe..." But she was undeniably softening to his congratulatory words.

"I have something which I planned to keep for your birthday but perhaps now would be a better time to present you with it." Moving from behind his desk he summoned the servant from the hall. "Go to my room and bring me the gift the tailor delivered yesterday."

The man returned moments later carrying a box which looked to be heavy considering how slouched he was but his back remained bent over even after placing the box on the desk. "Thank you Jackson." Lifting the box he smiled warmly at the girl now moving towards it. "You have earned this my girl."

He watched her grin like a child on Christmas morning as she lifted the lid and knew he had made the right decision. He had raised her without a mother and her young life had been spent moving around with a father who was heavily involved in both the military affairs of the British Empire and the more clandestine business of the Templars, his real interest. If he spoiled her now and then just to compensate for the other things in life she had missed out on well then that was his decision. She was as strong and ordered as any man under his command and devoted beyond question which was exactly why she was part of an elite and secret troop of soldiers who he knew he could utterly rely on no matter the situation.

Her face lit up as the red from the box shone onto her pale skin.

"Is this – oh Father its wonderful!" Shaking out the folds she held the jacket up at arm's length to see it in all its glory. "How did you ever?"

He helped her put it on over the dress she was wearing "I have been assured the fit will be perfect but we must bear in mind you will not be wearing this silly thing when you wear it in earnest."

She spun around trying to look at it from all angles, her earlier complaints long forgotten. It was the redcoat of the British army but one specially made to fit to her female shape. The green lapels were made of the finest silk and the coat itself was beautiful velvet. It had been more than 3 years since she had to try to hide her sex from her fellow soldiers by the time puberty hit her she was already established as a Templar and a soldier, so well protected from any discipline which would have ensued. And the men she served with honestly couldn't care less; she had been stupid enough to enlist of her own free will and she was just another target a shot might hit instead of them. Also the fact that Commander Davenport was incredibly protective of the girl many of them wrongly assumed to be his lover helped in that matter. He had been both proud and ashamed when her service under him had been discovered, his own daughter fighting amongst his men and it had taken a twist of fate for him to discover her but that was in the past now and he would make up for his apparent indifference to her in any way he could.

"Even with this tarts frock on it looks so smart, can you imagine how good it will look when I have on my breeches and spatterdashes?" The young woman who not 5 minutes ago looked as sullen as a beggar in the rain now sported an ear to ear grin.

Davenport stroked his bread and smiled indulgently at his only child "I'm glad you like it now perhaps you can return to your duties with your usual vigour."

Hugging her father she assured him she would.

The Huntsman moved through the smoking ashes of the farmhouse for once at a loss for words. Stephane Chapheau had arrived in the afternoon to tell him of the raid on the house where they had stored the massive weapons delivery and both men had arrived to survey the damage – or the remains as it turned out. The farmhouse and out building had been utterly decimated with fire and the body of the farmer was hanging from an apple tree in the yard.

"I cannot imagine what went wrong William no one knew the stuff was here." Shoving a finger under his bandana he scratched his head as he continued to look perplexed.

"He was drinking last night I doubt it would take a genius to work out what happened." He kicked out at a still smouldering plank of wood. "For now all we can do is cut down his body and give him a proper burial but I will make it my business to find out who is responsible, even if he did talk someone was in the bar to listen and it must be a priority to find out whom that was."

"His wife and children have been taken we should try to find out where they are being held and free them my friend innocents should not suffer for our cause."

"I'll put a couple of men on it but we have other business Stephane – a certain harbour master who is aiding slavers."

"Ah this Andrew Welsh you spoke of, I will look forward to assisting you." His hand automatically reached for the cleaver hanging from his belt and the Huntsman smirked. Such a kind hearted soul wrapped in the fiery temper of a demon and with the courage to direct his fury was it would most help.

"We seek only to end his trade he forfeit his own life when he sinned against his fellow man." He put a hand on his friends shoulder, "If Connor arrives in the city before we have a chance to send him word of this set back it will likely fall to you to tell him."

"Then we should ensure we have good news to soften the blow, to the docks?"

William grinned "We will have good news a slaver and the head of spy."

The two men had been searching the docks for days looking for the harbour master who it seems had taken the death of his colleague to heart and gone into hiding but how do you hide from men who would go to the ends of the earth to find you? They tracked him to a warehouse on the furthest side of his dock and now stood behind cargo boxes assessing the numbers they would be facing. So far they had seen four men go in and two leave but William wanted to be sure about this – he wanted to get him first time and get him cleanly. The frustration he felt at the elongated search for this man was only increased by his own personal frustration at being kept away from Eleanor. How many times had he cursed Pierre for his interruption or cursed the target for keeping him from her? He had lost count but it was thoughts of her soft flesh and dazzling eyes which kept him going during the long mentally taxing hours of laying in wait and watching. The door opened and an arm reached out to put a small box on the outside of the door. Stephane raised his eyebrows and the Huntsman nodded –time for action.

He burst forward and grabbed the arm yanking the man forward until his head smashed against the door he was holding open, there was a sickening thud as bone met wood but William never stopped to think he grabbed him by a clutch of his hair and smashed his head once more this time the sound produced was wetter, duller. Stepping over the body both men quickly moved into the warehouse and immediately found their targets, they had agreed before entry that William would go left and Stephane right and they moved in their designated directions like wolves hunting sheep – swift and deadly.

There were three men in front of him and one of them he knew from his clothes was the harbour master, William dropped the first man with a straightforward dagger in the back of the neck- if he lived he would never move anything below that injured neck again. The two other men drew their weapons but William unsheathed his own while his dagger hand drew the deadly looking hook from his belt. William buried his sword buried to the hilt into the gut of the closest man and his left arm swung the hook which was embedded in the harbour master's cheek, when it drew it away most of the flesh came with it and the skin which stayed attached hung loosely around the exposed jaw bone. Andrew Welsh barely felt the pain and was completely unaware that the flesh on one side of his face had been torn away; he charged forward and slammed his hammer into the ribcage of the unnervingly calm man who had just killed two of his men.

William's body wanted to fold from the blow but he forced himself to stay erect only allowing one arm to cradle the injury while his other drew his sword from the dead man's body and launched it at his opponent. Both men were in motion and while the aim of the blade was true the other man's movements changed its path, had he remained upright it would have entered his chest and pierced his heart but his body bent forward to launch a low attack and the tip of the blade pierced his left eye and cut a deadly but painless path through his brain. William removed the blade from his still standing victim and watched for a second as his body twitched uncontrollably, he could not bear to witness this even from a man who had dealt in human flesh and thrusting his left hand forward he released the mechanism of his hidden blade and ended his suffering.

He turned in time to see his companion with his boot on the chest of his victim tugging as he tried to free the cleaver buried deep in his skull. "I have heard of thick headed but this is ridiculous."

In spite of the situation William smiled - surrounded by bodies of men whose deaths would cleanse the world but scar his soul - he smiled.

Eleanor had returned to the inn after making her first report full of eager anticipation it had been so long since she had actually desired the company of a specific man she had almost forgotten the tingles of anticipation just thinking about the person could cause. She spent the rest of the first day hopefully lifting her head to the door only to be let down. The best part of the second day was spent in much the same frame of mind until the last of the supper guests had left and her hopeful wishes began to die but its death never left bones it left bitter disappointment and spite in its place. On the third day any man who dared to attempt to engage her in even light hearted flirting suffered a little taste of what she had in store for that arrogant French bastard if he ever dared show his face again. The first surge of early evening dinner had departed and she was at the bar chatting with Claudette before the next rush.

"May I ask you a personal question Eleanor?"

She shrugged and leaned over the bar "Ask away."

The past few days had been surprising to both women they found they actually had a lot in common and when Pierre wasn't around to muddy the waters they could chat happily for a few minutes. The older woman had seen her pining looks towards the door and watched the flush in her cheeks shift from the full blooded bloom of youthful love to the darker and more aging anger of one spurned. "Did something happen between you and Monsieur Saint Prix?"

Running her fingers through a small puddle of spilt ale she refused to meet the woman's look. "Not something important we had a dalliance. Why do you ask?"

"I saw the look you shared when he came in here on your first day and I saw how you watched the door for his return."

Again she shrugged "It was nothing and I don't watch for him."

Claudette smiled warmly at her and placed a hand over hers, "You watch or you don't but you should know he is a man of business and sometimes we can go many days, even weeks without seeing him. " A new flush on the young woman's cheeks told Claudette she had read the situation correctly, "He will come Eleanor; he seemed to be as enchanted as you were."

"If he does come he can turn right back around and leave again for all I care and if he tries to speak to me I'll make him wear his dinner." They both laughed until the old sour puss himself came back from the toilet and clapped his hands demanding action.

The fiddler was back in his usual spot but Eleanor had grown accustomed to his erratic playing and barely heard it anymore, she had just placed a drink in front of him when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Eleanor..."

She spun around quickly to confront the speaker but stepped back and narrowed her eyes at who she found. "Take your usual seat and I'll inform Madame DuPont of your arrival."

His heart fell into his stomach when he saw the way she looked at him. "I was busy and unable to contact you I would not have left you after –"

"It hardly matters Monsieur I have already moved on, please take your seat I have other customers to attend to." With that she spun on her heels and marched proudly to the kitchen satisfied that she had made her point but once out of sight of the man the reality of her actions struck home – hurt or not she still wanted him in the worst way.

"Are you feeling alright child?"

She glanced at Claudette and nodded, "I need to visit the closet." Walking to the back door and the outhouse she paused and without looking back told the older woman her favourite customer was in and waiting for her service. Claudette shook her head and grinned, 'Ah to be young and in love.'

She stood in the tiny outhouse for a few minutes trying to regain her control and battling to once more have a normal heartbeat. The half moon on the door let in a tiny shred of what light could be found from the dusky sky and closing her eyes one final time she pulled open the door now ready to face whatever comebacks he had for her. Only a few paces from the back door a hand closed around her wrist and swung her to the back wall, her hands balled into fists and she threw a solid punch into the sternum of her assailant. "What the – William what the hell are you trying to do?"

His face hovered inches from hers and his expression was stoic but she could see the fire in his eyes, 'Good she had hit a nerve.'

"What do you mean you have moved on?"

"Just what it seems to mean you had your chance and never took it and I moved on."

"I had my chance! What are you a prize in some summer fair?" She sneered at him but he wasn't done talking. "I was busy I would have explained that to you but you wouldn't let me speak. You behave like a petulant child who didn't get the right gift for her birthday."

Once more trapped between his body and a wall but this time was far less pleasant, he pressed his hands onto the wall on either side of her body. She flinched at his words, she had been compared to a spoiled child many times and it never ceased to anger her. "You came looking for me then left me for days thinking you could show up and pick up where you had left off but you were wrong. " She shoved her neck forward and brought her face closer to his, "I have to get back to work so kindly get out of my way."

Her hazel eyes locked onto his blue and he could see no forgiveness for his perceived ill treatment within those beautiful orbs. Dropping his arms to his side he stepped away from her and sighed deeply. "Your parents are dead and can no longer pamper you if you truly intend to live in the adult world you had better learn to view it through adult eyes."

Infuriated by yet more allegations of childish behaviour she closed the space he had put between them and bared her teeth at him. "How dare you tell me to grow up, have you seen how I support myself. It would be easier to move to a brothel and earn a living on my back!"

"I too have to earn a living Eleanor. You saw how affected I was by you the other night do you honestly assume some tawdry task could have taken me from you?" Her face softened for a fraction of a second but it could have easily been wishful thinking because in a blink she was once more stone faced. He threw an arm into the air and waved it at her before walking off in the direction of his home.

The warm satisfaction of victory she felt as he walked off was short lived as soon as he was out of sight all she could feel was loss.

Her nightdress was sticking to her skin and her blankets which had long ago been thrown to the floor now sat under foot as she tossed her legs from the bed. She had lain here for hours thinking about William and the things she had said to him. He had of course been right, she was spoiled and did expect everything to be dropped for her but it was more than that – she truly ached for the man and every day that he was gone had been torturously long and agonisingly empty. She rubbed a hand on the back of her damp neck and scowled cursing the humidity before conceding defeat and taking her cloak from behind the door. Claudette had told her where he lived and if she had to swallow her pride and apologise so be it, surely that would be better than how she felt now. She slipped on her shoes and crept down the external stairs beginning the short journey to the large house which stood alone on the edge of the city.

The lamp lighters had been lazy tonight and only every second or third street had been paid a visit but Eleanor didn't mind the darkness to her if felt more comforting to move unseen through the quiet streets on the edge of the ever expanding city. More soldiers than usual were out on patrol but that was only to be expected since militia activity had increased greatly since the outbreak of war. Passing a black smiths workshop she caught sight of her destination and her heart started hammering in her chest, everything about this was new and exciting to her.

The house was exactly where the woman had told her it would be and standing alone silhouetted against the night sky it should have been imposing but her heart lifted when it came into view and her steps quickened. The entire house was surrounded by a high wrought iron fence and the gates at the front were shut but not locked. She drew back the bolt and screwed her eyes shut when the gate screeched out loudly destroying the quiet of the night. Pausing there she took stock of her circumstances; she had been sent here to spy not to pander to the wishes of her twenty year old heart but could it be denied? Was there any other way to extinguish the fire she felt in the pit of her belly at the mere thought of his name?

She looked up at the top floor of the house imagining that is where he would be sleeping and dropping her shoulders she turned to leave. She would do what was expected of her – her duty – and somehow learn to control these urges. Perhaps in time if she found the Huntsman and the army quashed the rebellion there would be time for this sort of thing but in the here and now this sort of distraction was the last thing she needed. She sighed as she permitted herself one final look back at what might have been but rather than the expected empty path in front of the house she saw him.

He had been on top of his bed no less out of sorts than the woman was but he was a more controlled thinker and spent the time constructively trying to think of a way to repair what had been damaged between them. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the creaking of his gate – the very intentional creaking – and he sprang from his bed naked but for his breeches he flew down the stairs and grabbed a musket from the wall. He had crept out of the side door knowing the intruder would likely expect him at the front and made his way around the bushes until finally he saw her.

She looked fragile and full of doubt as he walked to her and knowing if he spoke he might scare her off entirely he did the only thing he could think of – he lifted his arm and offered her his hand.


	5. Chapter 5

Although the air was humid it did not account for how hot her skin felt, she was grateful at least that there was not much ambient light from the city behind them to show how flushed her face was. She could see him inviting her into his arms and that he seemed to be bandaged around the waist but his expression was stolen by the dark of the night. Her chest heaved as she eyed him standing half naked not five feet away from her and looking like he was about ready to burst out of his trousers. Normally this would have made her smile, knowing that her prey was dying to touch her but this time he wasn't prey – she wanted nothing from him, well nothing except for him to quench the fire he had ignited in the pit of her belly that is.

His tongue flicked out to moisten his lips, her groin twitched and she had to bite her bottom lip to stifle the groan she felt rising in her throat. Never had she wanted anything as much as she wanted him and that realisation alarmed her. She had to have this, she knew there would be no denying her body its needs but there was no reason to be emotional about it. She would take control of the situation and give her irrational body the sex it so badly craved but it would be only that, a good hard fuck with no petting and no sentiment afterwards.

About to take assertive action William dropped his hand and was set to go to her but she moved first closing the distance between them with a few strides of her long legs. His smile faded as she drew close enough for him to see the expression in her eyes, she had the look of a predator fuelled by blazing hot lust. He opened his arms and let her come at him happy for now to be at least moving in the right direction but he knew there was a battle coming and it was one his lady would not win.

Everything met at the same time, their lips collided as her arms coiled around his neck and his wrapped around her body immediately pulling her closer to him. Her tongue invaded his mouth and her fingers found a path to the hair she had never seen before. Her pace was furious and if he let her have her way they would have each other on the grass and it would be over in seconds.

Pulling his head back from her mouth he whispered, "We should go inside before a patrol goes past."

She nodded but found his mouth again making no effort to comply with his words so he hoisted her up in his arms and carried her newly-wed style to his home with her hands still locked around his neck and her lips still demanding his mouth. Her cloak and dress had ridden up her legs and the hand he was using to hold them was on the bare flesh of her thighs only inches from – "I have to be able to see where I'm going."

She smirked when he tugged his mouth free "Am I moving too fast for you Frenchman?" Sliding a hand between their bodies she found the solid lump in the front of his breeches and ran her fingers up and down its length. "He would disagree." Adjusting her body to face him she wrapped her legs around his waist and nuzzled his neck before nibbling his ear and whispering "Walk faster."

He watched her work on the button of her cloak then drop it to the floor as her feet behind his back moved, he heard what he assumed were her shoes landing on the floor. Noticing she was wearing a nightgown he said "You left your bed to come to mine."

Her hips ground against him as she replied almost purring, "I came for you not your bed you could have had me on the floor."

"There is a long night ahead who knows where we will end up." Pushing the bedroom door open with her body he took them both inside and made straight for said bed lowering them both to it with her legs still around him in a death grip. His lips explored her neck as his hands fumbled to unfasten his trousers fumbling because her fingers were working on the same thing he was.

"Let me help."

He looked into her face and suddenly it all made sense he knew exactly what she was doing and decided it was time to show the young woman that he had a few ideas of his own. Nodding his assent he forced himself free from her and stood back from the bed with his arms raised at his side "By all means, please do."

She narrowed her eyes sensing a shift but lust wouldn't let her stop long enough to process the new development. She lifted herself from the bed and stood in front of him suddenly regretting her words she began self consciously to work on his buttons. He wouldn't take his eyes from her face and with each passing second she felt her bold resolve falter but the smug twinkle in eyes gave her at least enough of a shove to fake it. Once free she worked her hands into either side of his trousers and lowered them from his hips pushing them down his thighs and letting them fall at his ankles. He stepped out of them effortlessly and when she lifted her arms to resume their embrace he raised his hand and wagged his finger at her. "No no Eleanor we are not done yet."

Lazily he tugged at the ribbon around the neck of her gown and when it came loose the neckline immediately expanded more than enough for the whole garment to drop to the floor but he slid a hand beneath the fabric and guided it along her shoulders enjoying her impatience almost as much as his hands enjoyed touching her. Once past her shoulders there was no stopping the fabric from falling but still he kept enough space between them to allow his eyes to feast on her newly exposed body.

"So very beautiful..."

Taking hold of her waist and pulled her in close "You seem to be in a rush but I feel it only fair to tell you that I plan to taste every inch of your body before this night is over." Her head rolled back as his mouth found her neck and his fingers began to wander over her frame. Lowering her to the bed he lay beside her and once more paused to take in the sight of her.

"William..." Her voice came out in a pleading tone which would have shocked her had she cared enough to notice it.

He smiled and moved on top of her "I know what you want but if you just have a little patience the rewards will be far greater, yes?"

She flinched when his fingers pinched a nipple and outright groaned when his mouth closed over the other. There was no roughness here, he moved his hands and mouth over her breasts with infinite care, soothing and teasing, teasing then soothing as his hand moved lower brushing over the hairs between her legs he found the small mound which he knew if handled correctly would reduce her to insanity. His mouth followed the path of his hand downwards still taking his sweet time, he could taste her urgency to him it was as delicious as her flesh, more so perhaps because he was the cause of it. His tongue softly lapped against the nub his fingers had just left but when she tried to increase the force he drew his head back smiling. She groaned and moved her fingers to the small lump of flesh he had been teasing and tried to satisfy herself but he took hold of it and kissed it softly, "This part is mine my sweet and the more you interrupt the longer you will have to suffer."

Leaning up on her elbows to glare at him she growled "Then fucking do something with it before I die from old age!"

His response came in the form of action as he returned with more vigour to his previous ministrations. She closed her eyes and tutted still put out that she was not getting her own way but the first waves of the heat his tongue was generating in her body washed her impatience away bringing the most incredible climax she had ever experienced in its place. Her hips lifted clean off the bed when his fingers moved inside her and she truly feared she would explode but he wouldn't stop. He moved his head with her hips and applied more pressure until her body spasms stilled and her cries became whimpers as she dropped back onto the bed breathless and dazed.

Taking up position on top of her he guided his shaft inside her keeping a slow steady pace until her body adjusted to his presence then his thrusts became firmer. He kept his eyes on her face watching every new sign of pleasure transfixed by how utterly beautiful she looked with her wild hair, her lips parted and her eyes shining with unfettered ecstasy. When their eyes met he placed a hand on the side of her head and held her there in place trapping her, he wanted to see what magnificent colours would shine back at him when he brought her to another climax.

She tried to close her eyes but he insisted she look at him and as he held her gaze their bodies synchronised moving together in perfect harmony. His heart was racing as he felt his own climax approach and unable to hold it off he took them to a harder pace as his thoughts found voice and he told her how much he needed her, how he had yearned to touch her and to possess the woman who has stolen his focus.

He was whispering in French and although the words had no meaning to her the soft breathy way he spoke was sweeter than any sound she had ever heard. She saw his jaw twitch and felt him push harder inside her and raised herself to meet him head on taking everything he had to give and giving him her all in return. If his mouth had worked wonders before it was nothing compared to the sensations wreaking havoc in her head. Her body arched and she was aware that she was calling out to him urging him on and begging him not to stop but it all felt so unreal. She was reacting to him on a purely physical level there were no thoughts she was aware of only a primal need to be utterly consumed by this other person. She had never experienced such a complete loss of control and the days of anticipation leading up to this moment now seemed like a small price to pay. "You don't know how much I needed you."

Her words were the catalyst for him to breach his own barrier and without a second thought he released inside her relishing the contractions of the sheath he was buried deep within. They both dropped onto the bed breathless and glistening with sweat, Eleanor turned onto her stomach and lay facing the far wall but he reached out for her and hugged her close to his chest stroking her back.

She buried her head into his chest trying to catch her breath and some of her senses. Curiously she felt the urge to cry. Her past with men was murky to say the least and now to be here with this beautiful man and have him shower her with his affection made her feel like unworthy as though her past had somehow sullied him. He felt her bosom heave and heard her sad sigh wondering what thoughts caused them he lifted her face to his and kissed her forehead. "Are you alright my sweet?"

She smiled and bobbed her head then dropped it onto his shoulder. Tousling his dark brown hair she grinned "I like this you should show it off more."

He tweaked her nipple "I like these does that mean I can expect to find you showing them off more?"

Chuckling she lay her head back down against him and let her mind dare to dream.

Both lost in their own thoughts they lay together for a few minutes before she broke the silence "I should get back I'd have a hell of a time explaining where I've been if I was missed."

He held her tighter to him unwilling to part so soon "I think not, we have an appointment on the living room floor young lady."

Leaning up on her elbow she giggled and broke the one rule she had set for this encounter, she ran a hand over the bandages on his chest and kissed his shoulder "What happened?"

"A bad tempered mare and a foolish rider are never a good pairing." He lied everyday to many different people but telling this one stung him and he quickly moved on "What about you I saw one or two scars on your body?"

"Growing up with all male cousins is no place for a faint hearted maiden." Her lie came as naturally as his but it came with the same distaste.

They chatted for a time about nothing and everything before they once again fell silent. "I really should go William I would be shamed if I was discovered here."

He sighed deeply "I'll walk you home now but only if you promise to come back tomorrow."

Their parting was prolonged and bittersweet with the new lovers loathe to leave each but when finally he watched her move inside her room and close the door he returned to his big empty house to wait out the hours until he could be with her again. Having been alone since he was sent to the colonies as a 17 year old novice to serve in an order which had suffered great many setbacks he believed he had adapted to his solitary life but Eleanor proved that was not the case. Would she be the woman he could trust with his secrets?

She heard sobbing coming from the next room and crept over to her bedroom door opening it a fraction to get a clearer idea of what was going on. She seldom used the internal entrance to her bedroom and was vaguely annoyed to have found it unlocked but the sound of Claudette weeping pushed that from her mind. "Claudette, are you alright?"

"Eleanor where have you been I came to find you but you were gone!" She heard the heavy woman's footfall as she ran across her bedroom to the door and stayed put waiting to see what trouble she was in. "I need your help. Pierre is dead and I don't know what to do."

Wide eyes she moved into the hallway "What happened?"

Grabbing her arm and looking guiltier than sin she dragged the young woman back inside her room and shut the door. "He- he caught me and Oliver snuggling and well you know what his temper is like only this time I couldn't bear to suffer his beating. I hit him with the bronze candlestick and he is dead."

Taking a second to ingest the information she watched the woman build up to a fresh bout of hysterics and was torn between giving her either praise or a slap, she went with the latter. "Calm down Claudette it is done now and it's our lot to deal with it but we must be clever and steady to pull it off. Can you do that for me?"

Nodding her head emphatically Claudette said she could and allowed herself to be questioned about the circumstances. "Alright so the body is downstairs and the weapon is still beside him?" More nods from Claudette. "We'll say there was an intruder and Pierre went down to tackle him and we found him like that minutes later."

It struck the older woman that this young girl was being far too calm but she was so grateful for the help she shrugged it off. "We will never get away with it and they will hang me for murdering poor Pierre and send me to hell."

"No one is going to hang and never mind poor Pierre he was a fucker and frankly I'm amazed you waited as long as you did to do him in." Taking them both downstairs she spent a few minutes going over their story before she told Claudette to sit while she summoned assistance. Pausing at the door she turned back to the still crying woman, "Oliver, the fiddler. Seriously you snuggled with him?"

"I did a lot more than snuggle we have been lovers for months now and he is surprisingly generous in that area."

More impressed than ever Eleanor entered the street starting to run hoping she wouldn't come across a patrol until she was suitably out of breath and distressed looking.


	6. Chapter 6

By the time Eleanor returned with the guards Claudette was sitting on the floor between tables beside her late husband's corpse weeping uncontrollably and muttering all manner of curses down upon herself but thankfully those curses were in French and all the British troops could see was a distraught woman howling nonsense. Eleanor placed herself between the corpse and killer and lifted the woman to her feet "We must step back and let the men do their jobs Claudette come over here and sit by the fire you are freezing." Placing her in one of the seats nearest to the fire she moved to the bar and poured her a very large glass of some awful substance which passed for brandy in these parts. "Drink this and get some colour back in your cheeks."

With her hand rubbing the older woman's back her performance returned to the soldiers who were leaning over the fallen Pierre and whispering to themselves about how hard he had been hit to smash in one side of his skull. "We never saw anyone by the time we had mustered the courage to come downstairs there was only poor Pierre on the floor as you see him now." Her eyes brimmed with practised tears and her hand covered her mouth. "If only we had been stronger we may have helped him."

"Now now dear you mustn't blame yourself had you come down the fiend would have likely done you a great harm, all things considered you both did the right thing." The soldier placed a hand on her shoulder and stroked the flesh exposed from the loose neck of her nightgown.

Eleanor's downcast eyes lifted hopefully to him and she smiled shyly, "Do you really think so?"

"I do yes now let us get this mess cleaned up you ladies have suffered enough."

When the soldiers finally left and Eleanor got Claudette back into bed the sun was crawling into the sky but struggling to shine through the heavy grey clouds. Sitting on the top stair the young Englishwoman drew in a long breath and held it for a few seconds trying to come to terms with all the events of the night just passed. The Frenchman was a worry to her she would have to keep him at arm's length at least until she had some sort of resolution to her mission then maybe they would be free to explore the possibilities. Although even as she thought of him she felt warmth rising up through her stomach to her chest and reddening her cheeks, there would be no arms length with William and no sense pretending that she would even try. She would however have to keep her emotions well and truly in check they had a tendency to cause trouble and it would be folly to let her head rule her head even if for a little while.

The situation with Claudette was far simpler to comprehend, Pierre was a horrible person and Eleanor needed to keep this job going needed the place to stay open for business and so had helped her cover it up. That Claudette had warmed to her and had been what Eleanor imagined a friend would be made the choice far easier to live with. Eleanor Mallow never had any friends to judge the situation by but her natural loyalty had kicked in the instant she saw the woman in trouble she protected her friend and her mission without hesitation still unsure which of them they had thought of first.

Exhaling she stood and shoved her fist into the small of her back arching forward until she heard the pleasing click as the offending bones snapped back into place. "Time for bed old girl you have certainly earned a rest."

A hand on her shoulder and a voice gently coaxing her awake disturbed a beautiful dream the images of which faded from her mind the instant she opened her eyes. "Go away." Closing her eyes she barked at the interloper trying to recapture what had been stolen from her.

"Wake up my sweet the day is wasting."

It was the voice from her dream of that much she was sure but still she was loathe to give up on her attempts. "I'm still tired come back later." Rolling onto her side she felt soft hands sneaking under the blankets and stroking her leg.

"Shall I come in beside you?" Lips against her ear and warm breath brushing against her lobe got her full attention and groaning she turned to meet the body which had lain beside her. "What were you dreaming about you were making the most delicious sounds?"

Chuckling she tucked her head into the crook of his neck, "Some soldier boy I meet a while back."

"I know you are lying my sweet, no boy could ever make a woman moan as you did." Running a hand over her hair he pulled her closer to his mouth and whispered, "Were we as perfect together in your dreams as we are in life?"

"I wasn't dreaming about you." Snickering she tugged his hand away from her stomach.

"Then I'll have to try harder to win a place in your dreams."

Lifting her head to his for the first time since the previous night their eyes met and her smile faded. She wanted to make a snappy reply but her stomach had leapt up making a new home in her throat to block any words she might produce. Reaching in to kiss him she closed her eyes before he could see what she felt sure was shining out at him from her treacherous orbs.

He met her lips happily but kept the pressure soft, he had other plans for them that afternoon and this little vixen could easily keep him here for days if she set her mind to it. "Come out with me. Claudette is keeping the inn closed for a few days. I want to take you to the woods for a picnic."

"You know about Pierre and the intruder?"

He was already on his feet and pulling her along behind him when he turned to her with a twinkle in his eyes. "If by intruder you mean Claudette then yes I know and I approve of your actions even if they do surprise me somewhat. How is it that a pampered girl can think so fast in such trying circumstances?"

'Fucking stupid woman told him the truth! Who else was she spilling her guts to?'

"She um- I eh- I don't know. I came home and it had all happened and I did what I thought was right. He was a bully and got what he deserved." Moving to take her dress from the peg on the back of the door she scowled "It was all in vain if that idiotic French twat doesn't stop telling people the truth."

"Relax my sweet Eleanor told only me. She has long since confided in me with matters of a personal nature and I'm glad you were here to help her, glad and surprised."

"So you know about her and Oliver?" When he nodded she smirked "I can't imagine what she sees in him. I mean Pierre was a horrible husband but the fiddler is a waster if ever I saw one."

William shrugged and moved past her to the door, "l'amour est étrange."

"What do you mean he isn't here? It was he who summoned me."

The guard rolled his eyes and tried not to sound as impatient as he felt. "I guess he forgot." Taking a definitive step towards the door he let the brat know the conversation was over.

"Is there a message for me at least?"

"You could check his desk I suppose but if he forgot you were coming then I don't imagine he would have left you a note."

Waiting until the scrote had closed the door Eleanor crossed the small outer room and entered her father's office knowing her search would end in failure but still hoping that there would be some form of scribbled apology or even a mission, anything to let her know he had been unavoidably called away and not simply forgotten her again. Moving around papers on his littered desk she found nothing and dropped into his huge leather chair sinking into the depressions her father's heavier body had left in the padding over the years but it was the sinking feeling in her stomach which reminded her of the man. Not for the first time she wondered what it would take for her father to consider her important enough to warrant his attention.

That evening Claudette opened the inn for business for the first time in three days and the day after Pierre's funeral, the first person to cross the threshold was Oliver shiny boots combed hair and all. He was soon joined by a small group who all sat around the same table speaking of old times and old friends. William came in and spent a few minutes chatting with her in the kitchen before he took a chair at the table and shared the laughter she could hear from the kitchen. His was a hearty laugh and the faint lines at the side of his eyes told her it was something he did often. Even Claudette seemed to forget her eternal damnation and took part in the jovial conversation leaving Eleanor alone in the kitchen to deal with serving the already prepared food.

She took the first plates out to the guests and placed them before moving back towards the kitchen to gather up the rest, she heard William ask her if she needed any help but chose not to respond. Since her wasted trip across the town that morning her mood had been foul and was not being lightened by the buffoons in the other room chattering away in their silly language. Her second trip to the table was to serve Claudette and William their meals and when the older woman told her to fill a plate and join them she declined instead opting for her own company at the bar.

"Come over and join us Eleanor we are reminiscing about old times in France." His tone was soft and his expression light hearted but she responded to neither.

"I've never been to France." Taking up a cloth she wiped down an already clean bar.

"The stories are of people Eleanor and those things are the same all over."

"I've said no thank you now please stop pestering me."

"What is the hell is wrong with you? You of all people should know Claudette needs our support tonight."

"Then she should have thought of that before she sat at a table full of horrible people muttering that inane yammer you pass off as a language."

One brow tilted slightly as his azure eyes pierced through her. "You truly are the most spoiled person I have ever met and I grew up among the elite of the world's tantrum throwers."

If he expected his words to be met with anger he was wrong, her hazel eyes glistened in the lamp light but there was only pain in her gaze. "Go back to your friends William you can come find me next time you want a fuck."

Her expression had him on the cusp of an apology but her words had his hand itching to smack her jaw but in the end he chose to walk away. "Come back to me when you decide to be a worthwhile human being."

Claudette witnessed the exchange and her young counterpart's quiet departure and decided to lock the door and keep this evening between her and friends. During the course of the evening her eyes would dart to the door which Eleanor had left through hoping she would come back down but she never did.

When the last of the guests left she made her way up to her room with a small plate of food but her knocking received no reply and the door was locked. She wanted to tell her William was miserable and left soon after the meal, to tell her that life was too short and love too hard to find to play silly games with it but the girl was either sleeping or ignoring her. Shaking her head she put the plate on the table in the hallway and went to bed wishing she had accepted Oliver's offer to stay and keep her warm.

Commander Davenport watched his daughter approach the ship and knew that the storm clouds in the sky had nothing on what was in her head. "Whatever can be upsetting her now?" Moving along the gangplank he decided to meet her on the dock and spare his men the sound of her bitching. "Good morning Eleanor although good might be the wrong word, you look darker than the sky."

"I'm tired I haven't been sleeping well. You wanted to see me?"

Surprised by her desire to get down to business and forgo her usual round of complaining Matthew drew a piece of paper from his pocket. "This is the name and address of a man who has information we need. It is stored in a safe at his home but the key thing is no one can know we got to it; to simply break in and steal it would render it useless. We need someone to lure him into their trust and gain access to his home while he is sleeping."

"You want me to sleep with him and then raid his safe while he is asleep?"

He flinched at her words but kept his eyes on her "Is there a problem?"

"No problem Father. I know what my role is and will strive to succeed." Taking the paper from his fingers she began walking back towards the side street she had come from.

"Do you want to come onboard and have some tea?"

"No thank you Father I have a lot to do." She tossed the words over her shoulder with barely a look behind. The street was full of people all chatting and smiling passing the time of day with friends and neighbours and Eleanor envied them those things from the bottom of her heart she wished her life had been more simple. Instead of going back to Claudette's she beat a path for her own little house and tried to think of an easy lie to tell her employer to get the night off. Looking again at the paper her father had given her she smiled, tonight she would not be wearing the dress of a servant tonight Eleanor Mallow would be a serving herself on a plate to a man of the cloth no less.


	7. Chapter 7

William lowered his head almost to the desk and narrowed his eyes trying to focus on the tiny hole he was threading the wire through but his hand kept slipping. His wrist blade had been a little louder than he liked it and he had spent the past hours oiling and cleaning the mechanisms of the weapon before reassembling the pieces but it was the last part he was struggling with. Normally he would have no problems with such a simple task, he had designed and built far more complex weapons that this one but for some reason his hands would not do exactly as he wanted them to do and his eyes would not see quite as sharply as the minute parts required. "It's that damn woman she has bewitched me!" Slamming the screwdriver onto the desk he stood too quickly causing him to wince at the ugly sound of his chair scraping along the wooden floor. Climbing the basement stairs he resolved to open a bottle of wine and at least ensure at good sleep to finish off this miserable day.

Eleanor had not been at the inn that night with Claudette simply saying she had requested some time off to meet up with an old friend but William was unconvinced. The woman had been playing games with him since the beginning and for her to be absent the day after they had a row was in no way a coincidence. With a bottle in one hand and a glass in the other he dropped into the big chair in front of the unlit fire and tried to relax his mind enough to think of the far more important matter of his meeting with Connor the following morning.

* * *

Her escort arrived a little after 8 and Eleanor was at the door waiting for him with her foot tapping and her arms folded beneath her bosom. "You are late."

The young man's delighted expression faltered at her words "Just a few minutes late Miss Mallow hardly worth complaining about."

"Let's just get this over with shall we?" Striding past him she ignored the arm he offered to her and made her way to the carriage he had waiting at the end of her narrow street. "When we arrive do not make too much of our being together if I make a move and he takes the bait then you leave discreetly, please don't feel the need to bid me goodnight or any such nonsense."

Edward Littlejohn mouthed the words "Uppity bitch." Behind her back but kept his eyes on the graceful swing of her hips as she moved. Her green bodice clung to her body in all the right places and the lighter silk of her skirts flowed to accentuate the feline style of her movements. 'She's like a cat that one all slinky and claws.' Grinning to himself he let some of his original delight at seeing the beautiful woman waiting for him creep back into his thoughts. 'I wouldn't mind finding out how sharp those claws are.'

The journey across the city centre was silent and for Edward not the least unpleasant. She sat opposite him and stared out the window leaving him free to enjoy the view inside the carriage. The wheels hit a bump in the road throwing Eleanor forward in her seat she grinned when she saw her young escort virtually drooling at sight of her breasts when she fell forward. "Wondering what it would be like to touch them?"

Shaking his head as his cheeks reddened he averted his eyes. "Good because most of the men who find out end up dead."

The storm which had been threatening to break for the past few days choose the minute before she stepped out of the carriage to unleash it's fury upon the earth. A dull and distant roll of thunder followed by a bright flash across the sky and then the heaven's opened up saturating the earth within seconds. "Slightly ominous wouldn't you say?"

He nodded but made no reply since he had not the first idea what to say. He knew she was going into a dangerous situation but was it worth trying to comfort her? A junior officer under the direct command of her father he had been instructed to accompany Miss Mallow to a birthday party in the wealthier part of town but to follow her instructions to the letter. When he first learned he was taking her to a man who not only procured weapons for the rebels but who had the entire list of the Boston leaders neatly written down in his safe he had fancied himself a bit of a hero who would protect her from any danger but now, sitting across from her, he knew she could take care of herself. 'She would have my throat cut and my pockets emptied before I even knew I was in danger...'

The butler showed them in through a grand arched doorway and announced them as Mr Littlejohn and companion. Eleanor never batted an eye at the slight she had more on her mind than recognition. There were small groups of people cluttered around the elegantly decorated room but he man she was here to see was easy to spot dressed as he was in the clothes of a servant of God. Since her opinion of people in general was fairly low it had never occurred to her that he would be a devout man who would be above her advances and a few minutes after making eye contact his behaviour gave her no reason to change that opinion. He was a scrawny man with a full head of fluffy white hair and a beard covering his entire lower face 'Why are they never handsome?' Sighing as she positioned herself close to a piano someone was making a decent job of playing she leaned against the wall and waited to see if he would make the first move.

His eyes kept flitting back to her the young woman who arrived with good looking young man but who had unless he was very much mistaken, been making eyes at him since she arrived. He moved to the group closest to her and persisted with his vigil resolving to approach her if she looked at him again beginning to believe that she perhaps knew him. "Ah Reverend Goodfellow so glad you could join us this evening there has been little to celebrate of late."

He made cursory replies all the while glancing over at the sullen looking beauty that stayed on the fringes of the party. "Excuse me please Geoffrey I think I see the daughter of an old friend." Her expression stayed non committal as he neared her, "Hello dear I don't think I've had the pleasure of your acquaintance my name is Hubert Goodfellow."

Eleanor smiled and dipped her body in a polite curtsey, "Eleanor Mallow pleased to meet you."

Taking her hand in his he raised it to his mouth and brushed his lips against her fingers lingering a moment longer than was proper, testing the water as it were. "You don't seem to be having a very good time my dear your companion is being... well to put it bluntly rude. I would never leave such a beauty unattended."

"He is here to enhance his political connections Mr Goodfellow I am merely window dressing."

The reverend spent the next hour being true to his word and never veered more than a few feet away from the lady. His wife had died almost a decade before and he had not enjoyed the company of the gentler sex since then and yet here he was daring to believe. His glass was drained and refilled so many times in such a short space of time that his courage was no longer an issue, he knew he was going to do something but so much depended on how her escort behaved. The young man occasionally crossed the room to address her but would move away quickly and the older man knew she wasn't going to stay much longer. "You are not having a good time are you?"

"I'm afraid not but it seems like a good reason to leave."

Crunch time had arrived and he decided to chance his arm, "Miss Mallow I have so enjoyed chatting with you may I be so bold as to suggest we meet again another day for lunch or dinner?"

Her eyes flicked up to meet his and what he saw in them made his insides heat to boiling and melt, "If not for you good sir this night would have been unbearable. Would it be too much of an imposition if I asked you to escort me home?"

They left the party with as much decorum as he could muster and now alone inside his carriage he could hardly believe his luck. "You never did give me an answer to my request that you join me for dinner my dear."

Again those stunning eyes of hers - sometimes more green than hazel – met his. "This night isn't over yet."

His hand moved to her neck of its own accord and without the permission of his brain his mouth closed in on her lips. Waiting for the slap which would inevitably result from his actions he froze then the most wonderful thing happened. Her lips moved beneath his and her hand coiled around his neck pulling him closer to her. "Tell the driver to take us to your house." She had to repeat her instructions another couple of times before he did as he was told, he was far too engrossed in the soft young flesh he was touching.

Rapping the roof of the carriage with his stick he barked to the driver, "Change of plans Miller straight home with us."

Eleanor shifted away from his overly eager eyes in an effort to slow him down a little but he moved with her, "Now where were we my dear?"

"Getting a little ahead of ourselves I'm afraid Mr Goodfellow, we should attempt to restrain ourselves until we have more privacy."

Her words were lost on him, a mixture of alcohol and lust were refuting the reason in her suggestion. "So very soft..." His mouth moved over the flesh of her neck and his hands began a manic exploration of her body. "So very soft, so very young..." Reverend Goodfellow was lost in a world of frantic desire and nothing short of violence would stop him now. His fingers tired of feeling the material of her corset worked frantically to get beneath the fabric and expose the mounds of flesh beneath. Desperately tugging and pulling, he finally released one of her breasts from the garment and within a heartbeat his lips were upon it sucking greedily at the pink bud he had revealed. His hand grabbed her waist and yanked her body down as close to horizontal as space would allow and covered as much of her body as he could with his own his free hand now fighting to get beneath the silk of her skirts.

She cringed when she felt his hard groin rubbing against any part of it her he could reach and knew she had to take control or he would spend himself inside his own breeches. "Stop this now it is too soon." Forcing herself upright she shoved him to the other side of the carriage. "I like older men because they have more control Mr Goodfellow have I made a poor choice?" His glazed eyes looked back at her and his head shook. "Either you take hold of yourself and show me that you are capable of being the sort of man I want to bed or I will have your driver stop and get out now. Do you understand what I want Sir?"

Again he shook his head, he really didn't but he never really meant to show her that. "Ah yes, of course I do. Never fear I will spare your blushes and allow you the privacy of my bed chamber."

Her lips twitched at his misunderstanding and for a second she considered leaving him to believe it was humility forcing her to hold back but no, best to show him now who was in charge. "I want a man who will take the time to taste me and touch me in all the places I want to be caressed. I need him to have control of his own desire to ensure that he delivers me to the edge of madness. Younger men are so eager to satisfy themselves I always find the slow hand and experienced fingers of a more experienced man yield far greater rewards. Are you such a man?"

Her words conjured up the image of her Frenchman and she visibly flinched at the memory of his mouth of her flesh so real she could practically feel him there still.

"Yes I am my dear I was merely intoxicated by your charms, you have not chosen poorly."

The remainder of the short journey had been a brief taste of hell for Hubert as he tried to imagine what on earth he was going to do to please this woman. In his experience climbing on top of his wife and doing the deed had always been enough. Now standing here inside his lounge she turned to him and smiled, "Shall we have a drink first?"

He filled two whisky glasses almost to the top and downed his in one go before refilling it and moving to the sofa where she was seated. Taking the drink from his hand she watched him toss his own down his throat and smirked 'Good fellow by name...' Lifting her glass to her mouth she let some of the bitter tasting amber liquid trickle over her lips then pulled his face to hers and poured it from her mouth to his. In this way he took in three treble shots of whisky in a matter of minutes and she knew exactly how to end this. Straddling his waist she let him once more expose her breasts as she rubbed the junction at the top of her legs against his lump. "Tell me how I taste."

He moaned as she began to grind harder against him and tugging his mouth still full of the flavour of whisky from her nipple he lied, "Like honey my dear you taste like honey."

Smirking she moved her body back and slid her fingers over his groin rubbing up and down at his shaft still concealed within his trousers. "Not like that Eleanor it will be over too soon I want to ride you."

The last thing, the very last thing she wanted was for this man to touch any part of her that William had graced with his attention but he was not to know that. "You are far too excited to wait; we can get it over with this like first. It will be an easy matter to arouse you again."

He knew he would struggle to gain another erection and shook his head desperately fighting off the natural outcome of what her hand was doing. "I will get you hard again in no time my mouth knows some cunning tricks and we have all night, just relax and let me get this first time over with."

His hands had a painful death grip on her breasts, she knew they would be sore for days after this idiots handling of them but if she could get what she needed from him and get out of it without having to fuck him then it was a small price to pay. "Oh my dear Miss Mallow, oh my dear..."

She closed her eyes and swallowed down the bitter tasting bile she felt rising in her throat. She had never enjoyed these sorts of missions but this time was far worse than any that had come before. Every time she closed her eyes she saw the face of William and suddenly she understood her desire to weep the first time they had made love, it had been her first experience of love

Thunder rumbled overhead as his head flopped back onto the rest of the lounger and his body shuddered as he ejaculated in his own trousers. "There now wasn't that nice. Lie back and rest a bit while I get another drink for us." Stroking his hair she whispered to him and watched as he fell into a drunken sleep.

The business of finding they key and the safe took no more than minutes Mr Goodfellow was nothing if not predictable. Copying the names and places from the lists in his safe she smiled at the few of the surprises on the list. "I think I'll pay this one a visit myself this very night."

Eleanor replaced the lists in his safe and his key in his drawer then hovered over his sleeping form long enough to bid him a silent goodnight. "You seem like a nice man and at least you had a little fun." Closing his street door behind her she drew the jacket she had borrowed from her conquest tighter against her body trying to shield herself from the rain. Her little house was on the other side of town but it probably wasn't even midnight yet and the walk would give her time to get her head straight, to stop thinking about what might have been and focus on what really mattered. Now was not the time for fanciful thinking and daydreaming. It was time for her lovely new red coat to get a proper airing and time for a traitor to die.


	8. Chapter 8

By the time Eleanor had given up on her search for the traitor the worst of the storm had subsided. Having returned her redcoat uniform to its hiding place in her closet she stood naked in the centre of the room looking at her reflection in the murky mirror. Her hand still gripped the scrubbing brush she had just used to clean her flesh to the point where it was raw but she wasn't looking for wounds she was looking for any part she might have missed with the hard wired brush and stringent smelling soap.

The face of the old minister was banished from her mind but the smell of cigar smoke and whisky had clung to her like a shroud and even now she fancied she could still smell it. This time she had gotten off lightly, there had been no intercourse and an external cleansing would suffice but on the 2 previous occasions when she had been unable to avoid penetration she had sat in her bath tub until the water had gone icy cold and cleaned, cleaned until she hurt. Even her beloved uniform had been soiled but she had no time to do anything about that now, it would trouble her until she could fix it but she had to get back into one of the cheap dresses – more fitting than her uniform in her present state of mind – and return to the inn before dawn.

Once dressed she raised the hood of the cloak and tugged it low over her face hoping to get back to Claudette before the lamp lighters began the task of extinguishing the street lights. A group of fishermen headed for the docks passed her by without comment but their presence forced her to glimpse in the direction of their destination. Her father might well be there, he often spent his nights on board a ship for some reason he felt safer there. The constant threat of insurgents attacking a high ranking member of the British army was very real but recently her father had learned of new threats which he considered far more serious and had sent his daughter to find one of those men, the notorious Huntsman. The other was a young native man they believe to have been trained by Achilles and who was currently causing mayhem among both the ranks and the Templars and of the British army. The small side street which led to the side entrance of the inn came into view and Eleanor hurried the last few yards determined not to be seen. She was going to have to sneak out again in the morning to deliver her list but that would have to wait for now.

* * *

William looked up and down the street without moving his head and sure enough there in a group of men all reading a notice on the wall was Connor. William gave the young man credit for being able to blend with anything other than bears – he was almost as big as they were - but blend he did and only a keen eye who knew exactly who they were looking for would pick him out of a crowd. Moving past a group of soldiers lazily leaning against a wall watching the market traders he approached the assassin nodding his head only fractionally to signify his attention he walked on ahead until he came to the far side of an abandoned warehouse and waited.

"William I am told there is a problem at the Frenchman's rest."

Connor spoke in his usual slow fashion but William knew there was concern behind those words. "There was one problem yes but we are as yet unsure if it was simple bad luck or something more sinister. For the time being none of our business is conducted there hence our rather unusual meeting place."

"So it is not affecting the daily running of the order?"

Shrugging his shoulder the slightly older man smiled "Beyond a mild inconvenience no." He stopped talking while a young boy with an armful of newssheets ran past them. "There has been little activity from our Templar counterparts it seems the British army's troubles with the colonists has caused them a problem or two."

Connor shifted his feet and looked in the direction of the fort "Do you know how you are going to reach your next target?"

William followed his gaze from habit but the fort was not part of his plans, "Yes I do. He spends a great deal of time with a select team of men handpicked from the troops and they often move around the docks in the early evening, he will be far easier to pick off there than safely tucked away behind the high wall of the fort."

"Good there is no need to rush but he is an important man to the Templars his death would be a great loss to them."

The assassin known as the Huntsman grinned as he thought of his next victim and the old man who shared his name. "How is Achilles, Connor? It has been far too long since I spent any time with him."

"He is well; he spends all of his free time playing board games with the new settlers on the homestead." Connor was aware of the time William had spent with Achilles and Aveline when he first arrived in the colonies and of the friendship which had developed between them.

Chuckling he replied, "I could never beat the old fox he was too good for me." His smile remained fixed as he watched the younger man begin to move away his hands as ever clasped in front of his chest.

"I will be around the city for a few weeks if anything else happens we should keep each other informed."

William nodded and moved silently away from a man he suspected could be a good friend if one was ever able to pierce the armour he hid behind. Shaking his head he looked skyward at the gray clouds overhead and knew it would be dull dark day. 'For commander Davenport it could be the darkest day of his life...'

* * *

An old drunk raised himself from the pile of manure he had fallen into and staggered to the corner his wild steps the very antithesis of the man who elegantly strode past him in the direction of the docks. The tall man never spared the drunk so much as a sideward glance, not caring that he was drunk at such an early hour or that he had just rolled around in horse shit – Haytham Kenway had other things on his mind.

"Ah there you are Matthew I was wondering where you had gotten to."

His smile was warm and his elegant movements when he offered his hand showed him to be a gentleman of breeding but Matthew Davenport knew the truth of the man knew it and feared it more than a little. "Haytham – I – uh wasn't expecting you today."

"I have business in Boston and felt it prudent to pay a visit to the men on the frontline as it were."

'He's heard about the Huntsman and he's here to ensure we end his –'but his musings were interrupted by his fellow Englishman who saw no reason to pause long enough for his brother to ponder his arrival.

The men around them were both British army and Templars but Haytham knew the military aspect of their lives was nothing more than a front – he was among friends. "This assassin Matthew the Huntsman I believe he is called, tell me how have you planned to end his nefarious interruptions?"

But then either by luck or by desire his daughter appeared at the foot of the gangplank and shouldered her way past the men posted there. "Ah here comes Eleanor I'm sure she has some information which will help shed some light on the identity and location of our enemies."

Her fast pace slowed noticeably once she saw the grandmaster of the order was part of the group of men, her pace slowed but her heart quickened. Nodding her head at the men she allowed her father to take her arm and lead her into his private cabin. "Tell me Eleanor, how did you fair?"

"I have the list father and he is unaware of it. I copied it and put the original back while he ah – well I have the list."

Her eyes dropped to the floor but her head might as well have for all the notice her father gave her. Snatching the paper from her hands he unfolded it and greedily feasted on the names which adorned it his head snapping up when he saw the name which had sent Eleanor out hunting during the night.

"Now that is interesting. At least we know who has been divulging all of our secrets. Good work my girl well done."

He handed Haytham the paper with barely a glance to his daughter and she felt the warmth of anger rise within her and stain her pale cheeks pink. 'If he knew what I had done to procure that bloody list...' but the truth was he did know or at least he knew the basic truth of her mission and that hurt her far more than is disinterest.

Choosing not to make a scene in front of the Grandmaster she coughed and moved to the door. "You gentlemen seem to have matters well in hand I should get back before my absence is noticed."

"Yes yes dear try to sneak away tomorrow and we can go over our next move." Again no eye contact but she was already past the door and moving toward the deck of the ship when she felt a light hand on her shoulder.

"Don't be too hard on him it isn't easy being a father."

She tried to hide her still flushed cheeks but knew it was pointless this man missed nothing. "He has a lot on his mind I understand Master Kenway."

Much to her horror he walked with her as she made her way back to the docks, gracefully sidestepping the aforementioned drunk and lending her a hand to climb into a carriage he had hailed for her. "Then try not to be too hard on yourself either Miss Mallow. You are not alone; we have all committed foul acts in the name of the order and the advancement of our cause. We must now pull together to ensure that the ends justify those means."

She smiled when he bowed his head and closed the door behind her. She watched him vanish from sight with his hand still on the brim of his hat and realised she wasn't as thrilled by the sight of him as she had once been.

"That bloody stupid Frenchman has a lot to answer for..." but her face was wearing the faintest hint of a smile and her hand was gently stroking the flesh of her neck as she once more let this man consume her entire mind.


End file.
